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Many historical sites at mouth of Judith River
(Editor's note: The following story was written by George D. Mueller of Great Falls, who grew
up in Lewistown. His father, the late Oscar O. Mueller, was a Lewistown attorney and authority
on local history.)
The area at the mouth of the Judith River, although isolated, contains more interesting important
historical sites than possibly any other place in Montana. A number of attempts at settlement
were made here in the 1800's, all futile.
As far as is known, the Lewis and Clark expedition were the first white men to visit this area.
They reached the Judith River on May 29, 1805, and camped near its mouth. After hiking a short
distance upstream, Clark named it for his sweethemi Julia Hancock, nick-named Judy.
In 1833, Maxamillian of Weid visited this spot, and mentioned the visit of a party ofIndian
chiefs.
After a fight with the Blackfeet at Fort McKenzie near the Marias River mouth on Feb. 19, 1844,
Francois Chardon of the American Fur Company, in strict secrecy, moved far down river and
constructed a trading post on the north bank of the Missouri, directly opposite the mouth of the
Judith. He named it Fort Chardon in his own honor. Chardon was an unscrupulous trader, hated
both by whites and Indians, and as a result, the fort was an unsuccessful venture as it was
constantly in a state of siege by Indians. In the summer of 1845, Chardon and his partner
Alexander Harvey left and were replaced by Alexander Culbertson, a kindly trader with an
Indian wife who restored a good business. A short time later, however, the post was abandoned
and burnt by Culbertson, so the trading post had a life of only one year.
From October 13-17, 1855, one of the most famous councils of all time was held with the
Indians on the north bank of the Missouri in Choteau County, opposite the mouth of the Judith
River. The site was on the flat adjacent to the present P-N ferryman's house. This site was picked
largely because of the bountiful game supply in the Judith Basin.
Principal participants were General Isaac 1. Stevens and Alfred Cummings, represented the
Indian Commission, and several hundred Blackfeet Indians with twenty-six principal chiefs in
the front row. The four tribes of the Blackfeet Nation represented were Piegan, Blood, Blackfeet,
and Gros Ventres. The Flathead Nation was also represented by the following tribes - Flathead,
Pend d'Oreille, and Kootenay tribes. Some Nez Perce and Assiniboine were present. The Crows
were conspicuous by their absence.
Signed on Oct. 17, the treaty recognized Blackfeet territory as a common hunting ground with no
settlements allowed. Citizens were allowed to pass through and live in Indian territory. Roads,
telegraph lines and military posts could be established. The government agreed to pay the
Blackfeet nation $20,000 annually for ten years in establishing and instructing in agriculture and

The area at the mouth of the Judith River, (where it meets the Missouir River) although isolated, contains more interesting important historical sites than possibly any other place in Montana. A number of attempts at settlement were made here in the 1800’s.

Many historical sites at mouth of Judith River
(Editor’s note: The following story was written by George D. Mueller of Great Falls, who grew up in Lewistown. His father, the late Oscar O. Mueller, was a Lewistown attorney and authority on local history.)
The area at the mouth of the Judith River, although isolated, contains more interesting important historical sites than possibly any other place in Montana. A number of attempts at settlement were made here in the 1800’s, all futile.
As far as is known, the Lewis and Clark expedition were the first white men to visit this area. They reached the Judith River on May 29, 1805, and camped near its mouth. After hiking a short distance upstream, Clark named it for his sweetheart Julia Hancock, nick-named Judy.
In 1833, Maximilian of Weid visited this spot, and mentioned the visit of a party of Indian chiefs.
After a fight with the Blackfeet at Fort McKenzie near the Marias River mouth on Feb. 19, 1844, Francois Chardon of the American Fur Company, in strict secrecy, moved far down river and constructed a trading post on the north bank of the Missouri, directly opposite the mouth of the Judith. He named it Fort Chardon in his own honor. Chardon was an unscrupulous trader, hated both by whites and Indians, and as a result, the fort was an unsuccessful venture as it was constantly in a state of siege by Indians. In the summer of 1845, Chardon and his partner Alexander Harvey left and were replaced by Alexander Culbertson, a kindly trader with an Indian wife who restored a good business. A short time later, however, the post was abandoned and burnt by Culbertson, so the trading post had a life of only one year.
From October 13-17, 1855, one of the most famous councils of all time was held with the Indians on the north bank of the Missouri in Choteau County, opposite the mouth of the Judith River. The site was on the flat adjacent to the present P-N ferryman’s house. This site was picked largely because of the bountiful game supply in the Judith Basin.
Principal participants were General Isaac I. Stevens and Alfred Cummings, represented the Indian Commission, and several hundred Blackfeet Indians with twenty-six principal chiefs in the front row. The four tribes of the Blackfeet Nation represented were Piegan, Blood, Blackfeet, and Gros Ventres. The Flathead Nation was also represented by the following tribes – Flathead, Pend d’Oreille, and Kootenay tribes. Some Nez Perce and Assiniboine were present. The Crows were conspicuous by their absence.
Signed on Oct. 17, the treaty recognized Blackfeet territory as a common hunting ground with no settlements allowed. Citizens were allowed to pass through and live in Indian territory. Roads, telegraph lines and military posts could be established. The government agreed to pay the Blackfeet nation $20,000 annually for ten years in establishing and instructing in agriculture and mechanical pursuits, education and Christianization. The treaty provided for peace and indemnity against citizens. No depredations or other violence was to be allowed. War was not to be made against other tribes except in self defense. Annuities could be stopped in case of violation of this treaty. An important provision of this treaty was the prohibition of intoxication or introduction of liquor to Indians.
Prior to 1866, there were only a few steamboat arrivals annually. In 1866 there were over 30 arrivals and due to the number of treacherous rapids below Fort Benton, the steamboats, as well as the “woodhawks” who supplied fuel for the boats were constantly subject to harassment by Indians. As a result, the citizens of the area let their desires be known for some sort of military protection.
Under General Orders No. 5, Department of the Platte, dated may 20, 1866, the First Battalion of the 13th Infantry commanded by Major William Clinton was ordered to proceed to Fort Benton and there or in that vicinity establish a post. They arrived at the mouth of the Judith River on July 11, 1866, and established the first military post in Montana, named Camp Cooke, in honor of Brigadier General Phillip St. George Cooke, then in command of the department.
Cottonwood logs were cut and barracks for one thousand men were built, with the use of much adobe in their construction.
The post was built on the south side of the Missouri River on the sagebrush flat to the west of the Judith River and a short distance from the P-N ranch headquarters .Surrounded by a stockade and trenched, it measured 500’ x 600’.
Camp Cooke was doomed from the start. Its location made it very difficult to reach with supplies and hard to leave. On its east and south sides, dense groves of cottonwoods and heavy brush made excellent cover for marauding Indians and the post was constantly harassed by Indians.
As may be surmised, the cottonwood logs soon split, swelled, and cracked and it was impossible to keep out the weather. The cottonwood logs became almost impossible to chink. When it rained, the buildings leaked like a sieve and in winter snow blew through the cracks. Fleas, bedbugs and rattlesnakes also made life miserable. Understandably, desertions to the gold fields were numerous.
On top of everything else, the post soon became incredibly infested with rats. The reader may well wonder what rats were doing in the middle of sagebrush flat, but they were no doubt present in some of the supplies brought in by steamboat, and once they got a start there was no end to them.
A very interesting letter to Oscar Mueller in 1963 from a woman whose husband was stationed at Malmstrom AFB in Great Falls at the time, reveals that her great grandfather was post doctor at Camp Cooke during 1867 and 1868. His diary has entries of the number of rats they had killed each day. It appears that the good doctor had some spare time in addition to treating the usual ailments and spent some of his time doing medical research on rats. He would experiment in cutting off rats tails and sewing them on again.
The year 1867 was quiet at Camp Cooke. Major Clinton was sent to supervise the building of Fort Shaw on the Sun River. There was little for the men to do and the post saw no action. The post was nevertheless the subject of ridicule by both the populace and the press.
On May 17, 1868, Camp Cooke had the distinction of being attacked by Indians. The post was shorthanded as 100 troops had left Cooke for a summer camp on the Musselshell called Camp Reeve. With only B and H companies under command of Major Clinton who had returned from Fort Shaw, the garrison held off the attack for six hours with the aid of several cannons.
The only casualty was Lieutenant William Auman, company commander of Company B, who wounded himself in the foot while cutting fuses for the fieldpieces. Apparently this incident wasn’t a blot on Auman’s service record as he later attained the rank of general.
This was one of the few instances where a walled fort was directly attacked by Indians.
By 1869, the criticisms of the location of Camp Cooke finally bore fruit. Conditions were investigated and I quote from the report to the War Department by Lt. Col. Samuel B. Holabird:
“This unfortunate post is situated on the right bank of the River Missouri, at the mouth of the Judith, upon a sage bottom, saturated with alkali. It is entirely overrun with rats and may be said to be in process of demolition by them. The store houses are in ruins; they were wretchedly constructed in the first instance, and nothing since has been done to remedy their shortcomings. General neglect and indifference characterized the post. The small garrison merely holds on in spite of rats. The Indians have moved away and left it alone.
“Little idea can be formed of what it costs the government to occupy this post and feed these rats; it would build a new post every two years.”
“Many of the horsed are worthless and have been disposed of. The mules are superb”
“No wood is required at this post, there being sufficient for a year. Some 50 tons of hay will be required; this cost $44.50 per ton. It has gradually been reduced from $110 per ton, the price paid by Lt. Keeling the first season of its occupation, a price that requires no comment. That officer has resigned.”
The Helena Weekly Herald seized upon and enlarged upon this report so as to make sure of the abandonment of the camp, probably in hope that the spending power of the soldiers would be added to some of the settled communities of the state.
The ledger of T. C. Power & Bro. reveals that they operated the commissary at Camp Cooke until the camp closed in 1869. They finally bought the remnants from the government and continued there until June 1872, as a trading post. The original Power books show that they continued to use the name Camp Cooke, until June 1872, when it changed to Clagett in honor of William H. Claggett, territorial delegate to Congress.
The old site proved an impossible location for a trading post and in June, 1872, they moved below the mouth of the Judith on the east side and constructed a new post named Fort Clagett. It was built by T. G. Bogy for T. C. Power & Bro., probably from the remains of Camp Cooke. Postal records show a post office was established named Clagett, on June 14, 1872, Abel Quaintance 1st postmaster, office discontinued November 4, 1878. The location of Ft. Clagett was two or three blocks south of the present stone warehouse building used for years as a horse barn at the P-N ranch. Clagett was a fort in name only as it was used exclusively as an Indian trading post. There was at first a partial stockade around the post but by 1878 that was not necessary and was no doubt used for firewood.
After the closure of the post office in 1878, the name was changed to Judith Landing. About 1880 the stone warehouse and trading post was built on the bank of the Judith River and was the center of trade for the ranchers and stockmen. Although built by T.C. Power & Bro., it was run by Bill Norris for Power. This was the beginning of the Power-Norris or P.N. ranch. From then on until the ‘90s, Judith Landing was used as a mercantile establishment and shipping point on the river. The ranchers would take their produce and wool here and T. C. Power would buy it or ship it on the steamboats. By the James Fergus books, in 1883 they placed a large order from Power in Fort Benton and had it shipped to the then called Judith Landing, and they went after it with teams.
The first write-up announcing the intent to abandon the post appeared in the issue of April 1, 1869, from which I quote:
“We never learned who was responsible for the unpardonable blunder of establishing a post at that miserable, outlandish, isolated, bleak, sterile, and worse than useless spot, but one thing now appears to us certain, that an all-merciful Providence, has visited this terrible plague of rats upon Camp Cooke, for the beneficent purpose of impelling the removal of a force of enlightened beings, naturally brave and efficient for their country’s service, to within the lines of civilization, where, instead of being themselves a sweet morsel for savages and ravenous vermin to prey upon, they may fill the grand object of their mission by protecting and encouraging the white settlers upon our borders, and at the same time open to occupation and usefulness the valley and mouth of the Musselshell, destined perhaps to be the head of navigation.”
The final blast appeared in the issue of August 15, 1869, quoting again:
“The government has even fed these rats for the past three years on oats, corn, flour and bacon, and has seriously considered the proposition to turn them over to Quakers, doubtless with the insane hope of having peace—but these rats are at open war beyond a doubt, and reason after the manner of the savages, whose experience have taught them that the more hostile they are, the more presents and promises they get from the government.”
Finally in the fall of 1869, Camp Cooke was closed and the remaining troops moved to Fort Benton.
Bess Streeter Aldrich in her book, “The Lieutenant’s Lady”, has resurrected the life of this isolated western military post. The story is based on a diary kept by a lieutenant’s wife who lived at camp for over a year.
A stage route was established between Judith Landing and Andersonville (site of the Montana Institute of the Bible) and on to Maiden in 1884.
The trading post and post office was continued under the name Judith Landing until 1908.
About a mile south of the present P-N buildings, at the foot of Clagett hill, lies the lonely grave of Mat Duncan. Duncan was a 21-year-old boy from New York City who was working at the sight of Clagett.
A band of renegade Indians were up on the bluffs, daring the white settlers and this young city boy against the advice of his elders approached them and was shot and killed. It was a long shot, from where the Indians were located. They buried him there and put a neatly carved headstone with the following inscription:
Mat Duncan
Killed by Indians
April 2, 1881
RES. N.Y.C
The stone has now been removed as the grave is now unfenced and cattle graze in this area.
The river bottom of the Missouri, at the mouth of the Judith, was probably the most used and occupied area by the Indians in Central Montana. Relatively free of snow in the winter and sheltered from the wind, it was the favorite winter resort of the Blackfeet, primarily due to the abundance of game.
Smallpox played havoc with the tribes at that location. There were two known epidemics during the 1800’s, one about 1838, and another a little later. Consequently, many burials were made in the cottonwood trees and in the clefts of the rocks in inaccessible places.
In 1952, the mummified body of an Indian child was removed from a cleft in the sandstone on the bluffs above the Judith River and given to the University of Montana.
Nature is quick to heal man’s wounds in this area. Nothing is left at Camp Cooke but the outlines of some of the trenches. A metal detector may reveal an old cartridge case or possibly a uniform button. Even the Camp Cooke National Military Cemetery, which once contained eighteen graves, has long since washed into the Judith River. And yes, even the rats are gone.
There is absolutely no evidence that Fort Chardon ever existed. The stone warehouse used as a horse barn still stands on the bank of the Judith but even its fate is uncertain unless immediate action is taken. Years of bank erosion has caused part of one wall to collapse into the Judith River.
The log cabin used by Bill Norris stands in a good state of preservation but is unmarked. The surrounding area looks much the same as it did when viewed by Lewis and Clark.

Many historical sites at mouth of Judith River
(Editor's note: The following story was written by George D. Mueller of Great Falls, who grew
up in Lewistown. His father, the late Oscar O. Mueller, was a Lewistown attorney and authority
on local history.)
The area at the mouth of the Judith River, although isolated, contains more interesting important
historical sites than possibly any other place in Montana. A number of attempts at settlement
were made here in the 1800's, all futile.
As far as is known, the Lewis and Clark expedition were the first white men to visit this area.
They reached the Judith River on May 29, 1805, and camped near its mouth. After hiking a short
distance upstream, Clark named it for his sweethemi Julia Hancock, nick-named Judy.
In 1833, Maxamillian of Weid visited this spot, and mentioned the visit of a party ofIndian
chiefs.
After a fight with the Blackfeet at Fort McKenzie near the Marias River mouth on Feb. 19, 1844,
Francois Chardon of the American Fur Company, in strict secrecy, moved far down river and
constructed a trading post on the north bank of the Missouri, directly opposite the mouth of the
Judith. He named it Fort Chardon in his own honor. Chardon was an unscrupulous trader, hated
both by whites and Indians, and as a result, the fort was an unsuccessful venture as it was
constantly in a state of siege by Indians. In the summer of 1845, Chardon and his partner
Alexander Harvey left and were replaced by Alexander Culbertson, a kindly trader with an
Indian wife who restored a good business. A short time later, however, the post was abandoned
and burnt by Culbertson, so the trading post had a life of only one year.
From October 13-17, 1855, one of the most famous councils of all time was held with the
Indians on the north bank of the Missouri in Choteau County, opposite the mouth of the Judith
River. The site was on the flat adjacent to the present P-N ferryman's house. This site was picked
largely because of the bountiful game supply in the Judith Basin.
Principal participants were General Isaac 1. Stevens and Alfred Cummings, represented the
Indian Commission, and several hundred Blackfeet Indians with twenty-six principal chiefs in
the front row. The four tribes of the Blackfeet Nation represented were Piegan, Blood, Blackfeet,
and Gros Ventres. The Flathead Nation was also represented by the following tribes - Flathead,
Pend d'Oreille, and Kootenay tribes. Some Nez Perce and Assiniboine were present. The Crows
were conspicuous by their absence.
Signed on Oct. 17, the treaty recognized Blackfeet territory as a common hunting ground with no
settlements allowed. Citizens were allowed to pass through and live in Indian territory. Roads,
telegraph lines and military posts could be established. The government agreed to pay the
Blackfeet nation $20,000 annually for ten years in establishing and instructing in agriculture and